Door-operating mechanism



April 23, 1925.

r A. E. KRAMER DOOR OPERATING MECHANI SM 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed June 15-, 1923 O I INVENTOB Ahxagder E Kramer TTORNEY CJI Patented Apr. 28, 1925.

UNITED STATES ALEXANDER E. KRAMER, F BROOKLYN, NEW YORK.

DOOR-OPERATING MECHANISM.

Application filed June 15, 1923. Serial No. 645,631.

To all whom. it may concern:

Be it known that I, ALEXANDER E. KRAMER, a citizen of the United States, residing at the city of New York, borough of Brooklyn, in the county of Kings and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Door-Operating Mechanism, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to mechanically operated doors, and particularly to mechanism adapted to operate one or all of a series of heavy doors.

One of the objects of this invention is the provision of simple and eflicient, automatically ope steel, and centrally controlled means, for partly or wholly opening and closing any selected door of a series.

A further object of this invention is the provision of Self-locking means for operating a door, adapted, when not in operation, to maintain the door in any given position against movement.

A further object of this invention is the provision of automatic means for preventing movement of the door beyond safe limits.

For the attainment of the aforesaid and other objects which will appear as the description progresses, I employ the mechanism shown in the preferred forms in the accompanying drawings, in which.

Fig. 1 is a top plan view, partly in section, of my improved mechanism. Fig. 2 is a side view of the same. Fig. 3 is a front elevation of the operating and reversing clutch. Fig. 4 is a. side eleva ion and vertical section of said clutch, and Fig. 5 is a front elevation of my improved medha-nism and of a door to which said mechanism has been applied.

In the practicalembodiment of my inven tion a heavy door 10, such as is used to guard warehouses and dock pier entrances, is guided preferably for vertical movement in either direction in the usual channels 11, which form part of the structure in which the door is built.

A pair of racks 12 are suitably secured to the inner surface of said door, and mesh with the pinions 13 on the pinion shaft 14. Said shaft llmay be rotated in either direction,

whereb the door is raised or lowered as de-' 7 sired. The mechanism for rotating said shaft comprises in part a suitable source of power, such as the motor 15, driving the shaft 16, on which is secured the worm 17,

means being provided for operatively connecting said worm to said pinion shaft 14.

Meshing with said worm is the worm wheel 18 on the gear shaft 19, on which are mounted the gear wheels 20 and 21. The wheel 20 engages and continuously drives the gear wheel 22 loosely mounted on the shaft 14., said wheel 22 carrying the toothed clutched member 23. A wheel 21 similarly engages and drives the intermediate gear wheel 24 and therethrough drives the gear 25 which is loosely mounted on the shaft 14 and which carries the clutch 26 in the same manner as the gear 22 carries its clutch memher. It will be seen that on the rotation of the motor shaft 15, the gear wheels 22 and 25 together with the clutch member attached thereto, are rotated in opposite directions.

Mounted for slidable movement along the shaft 1 1 is the operating member 27 of the clutch, said member being toothed on both sides for engagement either with the member 23 when in the extreme position of said operating member to the left, or for engagement with the member 26 in the extreme position of said operating member to the right, whereby the direction of rotation of the pinion shaft 1i may be reversed by merely shifting said member 27 along the shaft 14 from one position to the othe Said clutch member 27 is keyed to the shaft 1% as by means of a'key 28, for allowing longitudinal movement of said member on said shaft, while holding said member and said shaft together for rotation as a unit;

Pivot-ed to the door jamb at 29, is the preferably forked clutch lever 30, carrying the rollers 31. Said rollers are arranged in the groove 32 of the operating member 27 and serve to shift said member on the movement of the clutch lever about its pivot. For maintaining the lever 30 normally in neutral position, in which the operating member 27 is disengaged from bothof the members '23 and 26, flat springs as 33 and 3a suitably at tached at the extremities thereof to the wall, are positioned, each on one side of said lever, so that rotation of the motor shaft 15 and consequent rotation of the shaft 19 merely results in the rotation of the loose gear wheels 22 and 25 and of the clutch members carried thereby without causing the pinion shaft 14 to rotate and no movement of the doors results,

here a series of doors 10 are to be mechanically operated each of said doors preferably has a pinion shaft and clutch, though the gear shaft 19 may be continuous tor the entire series.

It will be seen that only by shifting the clutch member 27 into engagement with one of the clutch members 28 or 26, can rotation of the shaft H be caused, so that the motor may be allowed to operate continuously if desired without etlecting movement of any of the doors 10 of a series, unless the proper clutch operating member 27 of the particular door which it is desired to move, is thrown into engagement with one of the clutch members coacting therewith. It will also be seen that the springs 33 and 3st tend to keep the clutch member 27 in neutral position (Fig. 3) and that only when the lever is moved against the action of-said springs to throw the clutch member 27 into its extreme left or right position, will the door 10 be moved. I prefer to move the lever 30 and therethrough the clutch member 27 by means of a magnet 35 or 36.

hen it is desired to move the door 10 in one direction, a suitable circuit, not shown, is closed to the magnet 35 as by means of a switch, whereby the upper end of the clutch lever 30 is attracted by said magnet, and the clutch operating member 27 thrown into engagement with the member 26. lVhen it is desired to move a door 10 in the opposite direction the hereinbet'ore mentioned or another suitable switch not shown is thrown to close the circuit to the magnet 36, whereby the operating clutch member 27 is thrown in the opposite direction into engagement with the clutch member 23. Rotation of the shaft let in the opposite direction results, with consequent movement of the door 10 in a direction opposite to that hereinbefore described, when the clutch operating member 27 is in its extreme position to the right.

A pin 37, near the upper end of the door 10, is so arranged that near the lowermost position of said door, said pin 37 engages the arm 38 outstanding from the clutch lever 30. Further downward movement of the door thereafter causes rotation of said lever 30 about its pivot 29 to a position where said lever is no longer attracted by the magnet 35, the springs 33 and Sat serving to maintain said lever in the neutral position. Similarly the pin 39 near the lower end 01 the door 1.0, serves to throw the lever 30 out of engagement with the magnet 36 near the uppermost position of the door 10.

It will be readily seen that said pins 37 and 39 are operative to automatically disconnect the clutch and halt the movement of the door 10 near the danger points in the highest and lowest positions of said door.

' even though the operating motor 15 may continue to rotate freely without interruption. The door cannot drop oi its own weight because of the self-locking irreversible action of the inter-engaging worm wheel 18 and worm 17, when the clutch member 27 engages either one of the rotating clutch members 27 or 28.

lVhen said member 27 is in the neutral, inoperative or clutch disengaging position, means are provided for preventing the door from dropping of its own weight. Said means comprises the ratchet wheel 41, which is suitably secured on the shaft 14, and the pawl 4-2 engaging the teeth 43 of the ratchet wheel. For supporting said pawl 42, a bracket as H is secured to the wall or guides 11, said pawl being )lVOtOd to said bracket as at 45.

A depression 46 is made, in the outstanding arm 38 of the clutch lever, and part of said pawl is normally allowed to rest on the upper surface of said depression, whereby said pawl is normally supported by said lever in operative engagement with said wheel. The weight of the door is prevented by said pawl from causing the rotation of the shaft 14-, through the pinion 13 when said clutch lever is in its neutral position substantially midway between the magnets 35 and 36. In the above described position of said lever, said pawl engages and prevents rotation of said wheel in the direction corresponding to the downward movement of said door.

\Vhen the magnet 36 is energized to rotate the lever 30 about its pivot; 29, the engagement of the pawl 42 and the ratchet wheel 41 is not affected, the arm 38 merely being caused to move downwardly away from said pawl, and upward movement of the door can take place, while no downward HIOVQHIQDt thereof is possible.

However, when the magnet is energized to cause downward movement of the door, rotation of the lever 30 raises the arm 38 and therethrough raises the pawl 42, whereby said pawl is disengaged from the ratchet wheel and dowward n'ioveineut oi the door can take place. It will be seen that when the clutch is in operative position for either upward or downward movement of the door. the worm and worm wheel prevent movement due to the weight of the door, and that when the clutch is in neutral position, the ratchet wheel and pawl cooperate toward the same end. It will also be seen that any door of a series may readily be operated from a central station at which are arrai'iged a series of switches governing the magnets vtor operating each clutch-lever. This is done merely by throwing the proper switch to energize the magnet or 36 for operating the selected clutch to cause said door to move downwardly or upwardly as the case may be. Movement of the door is automatically halted when said door is con'ipletely opened or completely closed by the repositioning of the clutch lever into neutral. If

in its path, the circuit to the magnet 35 or 36 is opened, whereby said magnet is de-energized and the clutch lever 30 automatically brought back to its neutral position through the action of the springs 33 and 34.

It will be obvious that various changes in a the specific mechanism shown may be made without departing from the spirit of my invention, and I do not wish to belimited merely to the use of said mechanism.

I claim:

1. In mechanism of the character described arigid door mounted for vertical movement bodily, a vertical rack secured to said door, revoluble means operatively connected to said rack for moving said door vertically, a clutch for causing said revoluble means to rotate to either direction and to stop the rotation of said revoluble means, a magnet for operating said clutch, and means for preventing said door from dropping of its own weight when said revolulole means is freed from said clutch.

2. In mechanism of the character described, a rigid door mounted for vertical movement bodily, means for operating said door comprising a rack on said door, a pinion engaging said rack, and means for rotating said pinion, and means for stopping the movement of said door when said door reaches a predetermined position c01nprising a clutch operatively conneetable to said pinion, a pin on said door, and a clutch lever in the path of said pin arranged to be thrown by said pin in the uppermost and lowermost positions of said door for moving said clutch into neutral position.

3. In mechanism of the character described, a door, means for operating said door, and a clutch interposed between said operating means and said door, and means adapted to stop the n'iovement of said door when said door reaches a predetermined position, comprising a pin on said door and means in the path of said pin and operated by said pin for throwing said clutch into neutral position.

4. In mechanism of the character described, a rigid door mounted for vertical movement bodily, means for operating said door, a clutch controlling said operating means, a magnet for throwing said clutch into operative position, means for normally maintaining said clutch in inoperative posi tion and means for preventing said door from dropping of its own weight in the inoperatii 'e position of said clutch.

In mechanism of a character described, a rigid door comprising a rack, a pinion engaging said rack and means for rotating said pinion, means for ope 'atmg said door, a clutch controlling said operating means comprising an operating member toothed on both sides thereof, a toothed clutch member adapted to rotate in one direc-.

tion, a toothed clutch member adapted to rotate in the opposite direction, a lever engaging said operating member, a pair of magnets disposed on opposite sides of said lever and adapted to be energized forthrowing said operative member into engagement with the selected-one of said toothed clutch members, and a pin on said door adapted to engage said lever in the extreme position of said door for disconnecting said operating member from said toothed members.

6. In mechanism of a character described, a heavy door, means for moving said door vertically comprising a rack on said door, a pinion meshing with said rack, ashaft carrying said pinion, a pair of continuously rotating clutch members, and means for rotating said shaft in either direction com: prising a clutch operating member on said first mentioned shaft connectable to either of said rotating clutch members. and an electro-magnet on each side of said clutch operating member for operating said clutch operating member, and means carried by said door for automatically throwing said clutch operating member into vertical posi tion in the uppermost and lowermost positions of said door.

7. In mechanism of the character described, a door, means for raising and lowering said door, a clutch controlling said raising and lowering means, a clutch lever adapted to operate said clutch, an outstanding arm on said lever, means on said door for rocking said lever near the uppermost and lowermost positions of said door, an electro-magnet for rocking said lever, and means for normallv maintaining said lever in clutch-disengaging position.

8. In mechanism of the character described, the combination with a rigid, vertically movable door. of means for operating said door, a clutch controlling said door operating means, a clutch lever adapted to operate said clutch, a pin on said door for automatically operating said clutch lever into the neutral position thereof in the eX treme positions of said door, an electromagnet on each side of said clutch lever for operating said clutch lever, springs for maintaining said lever in inoperative position when said magnet is not energized for normally preventing movement of said door, and means for preventing the door from dropping of its own weight in the inoperative position of said lever.

9. In mechanism of the character described, a series of doors and means for operating any selected door of said series comprising a worm, means for rotating said worm, a worm wheel engaging said worm, a rack on each of said doors, a pinion engaging each of said racks, clutch controlled means operatively connecting said wheel to each of said pinions, means for operating a selected clutch to cause movement of said selected door and means carried by said door for throwing said clutch into neutral position in the extreme positions of said door.

10. In mechanism of the character described, a door, revoluble means for operating said door, a clutch controlling said operating means, a clutch lever adapted to operate said clutch, and means for preventing movement of said door downwardly in the inoperative position of said cluctch member comprising a ratchet wheel operatively connected to said-door operating means, a pawl adapted to engage said wheel, and an arm on said clutch lever adapted to allow said pawl to engage said wheel when said lever has been positioned for improved movement of said door, and when said lever is in its neutral position, and adapted to disengage said pawl from said wheel when said lever has been positioned for downward movement of said door.

11.1511 mechanism of the character described, a door, means for operating said door comprising a shaft, means for rotating said shaft in either direction, a pinion on said shaft, a rack on said door engaging said pinion,'a clutch on said shaft, a lever operating said clutch, and means for preventing uncontrolled downward movement of said door comprising a ratchet wheel on said shaft, and a pawl adapted normally to engage said wheel and an arm on said lever for lisengaging said pawl from said wheel when said door is to be moved downwardly.

Signed at the city of New York, this 12th of June, 1923.

ALEXANDER 'E. KRAMER- 

